The world we live in is in increasing revolt against the human inhabitants that currently take residence here.

Not only is weather and solar events causing massive disruption here on planet earth, but the natural world is increasingly becoming hostile as well.

When man lost the title deed to the earth at the Garden of Eden, it not only physically changed our world, but it fundamentally changed the way man would live in the world.

Imagine a person who has spent his whole life inside an enclosed cell with no windows or contact with the outside world. Would he know any better? Or would he think that was all there was to life? We have been in this fallen state all of our lives, and we have known no other existence other than the bitter harsh reality that is this world.

Adam and Eve were created and placed inside the Garden of Eden to manage and care for this particular piece of real estate. Once they sinned, they were removed from this garden paradise and had to leave for the world outside the Garden. Not to say that the world outside the garden was harsh at first, but certainly it was no Garden of Eden. The future flood would erase any trace of the Garden of Eden.

Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’:“Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. Genesis 3:17-18

I think we often overlook the words ‘toil’ and ‘cursed’ when reading through the first few chapters of Genesis. When man fell from innocence, not only was he cursed, but the entire natural order had the sin-burden placed upon it.

The Apostle Paul says in Romans 8:22…For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.

So it’s not just the earth itself that is groaning and travailing, but the “whole creation” which would include the living non-human creatures as well. We all collectively feel this heavy oppressive burden placed upon us. The animal world is no different. Mysterious animal die-offs recently have had the whole world wondering, what is going on?

I know that thorns and thistles serve a scientific purpose to protect the plants. Plants did not have nor need this protection prior to the fall of mankind, as man, beast, and every creeping thing were given plants for food to eat on the sixth day of creation. (Genesis 1:29-30) Plant life went from being bountiful and helpful, to something man would have to labor for. It went from being something pleasant and harmless, to something man would have to use caution over. This is how it has been for the last 6,000 years. Man has known nothing but labor and toil under the sun. But the Noahic covenant introduces a new change by divine declaration.

Noahic Covenant

"And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand." Genesis 9:2

A question I’ve come to consider is, why only curse the ground (and by extension the plant kingdom) after the fall of Adam? It would be another 1500 years before God would put the fear of man on animals. But why the 1500 year delay? It could be that animals were corrupted by the Nephilim by genetic tampering, much as man might have been. Man’s genetic makeup was corrupted to prevent a Messiah from ever coming. The animal world might have been corrupted to spite God’s creation. In Genesis 9:5, God extends the capital punishment decree to not just man, but to beasts as well.

All we really know is that by the time Noah’s generation had come, all of creation would become corrupt, so much so that God would destroy the entire world with a global flood (Genesis 6:7). Noah, his family, and those animals chosen to carry on the species after the flood would be the only survivors from this cataclysmic judgment.

God’s watery judgment upon mankind reduced the population from billions, down to just eight people. That population level wouldn’t be reached again until well into the 20th century. But as mankind’s population has increased, modern technology has allowed man to move further and further into the wilderness. And when push comes to shove, man is just no match for what the natural world can dish out.

The Pale Rider

"So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth." Revelation 6:8

As Christians we know that God is in control, and is holding the reigns back until the last possible moment until He comes again for His bride, the Church.

2 Thessalonians 2:7 states the Holy Spirit is restraining evil in this world, but I believe He is also restraining all of creation from going into open revolt.

Jesus likened the last days to be similar to birth pangs on a woman in labor. The pangs would be the events listed in Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21, and they would happen with greater frequency and intensity as time drew to a close. Once the Church is removed, all hell will break loose upon earth. It won’t be just man killing man and earthquakes; the animal kingdom will rise up as well.

Think about this for a moment. The Rapture will have removed millions from the planet leaving empty houses full of food, water, and warmth attracting looters and animal kind alike. By the time the pale horse is released in the fourth seal, countless millions will have already been killed by war, famine, and violence from both the human and natural cataclysmic disasters. Abandoned houses, looted stores, restaurants, and other places will attract wild and feral animals to take shelter. The general chaotic lawlessness will abruptly end most societal services such as electric, gas, water, and trash to large portions of the country. Think about what your neighborhood would be like if no trash were collected for a several months.

While it is common to think of the Hollywood version of the “post-apocalyptic” world in which the wilderness has over taken cities, but I think very much this will be the case for large portions of the country. Man will not only have wild animals to deal with. The fourth seal judgment will leave a trail of victims due to viruses and bacterial diseases such as Ebola, Rabies, Malaria, Tuberculosis, Pneumonia, Influenza, Plague, West Nile Virus, SARS, Swine Flu, Bird Flu to name a few, that will tragically sweep across the globe. Maybe this was what Jesus was referencing when saying:

"And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened." Matthew 24:22

I think it’s easy to overlook these things, as most of us live in homes that more or less have basic services supplied to us through the society we live in. When that society breaks down due to the Rapture and the ensuing judgments in the Tribulation, nature will begin to fill that vacuum that mankind has left. Tragedy, grief, and sorrow will be multiplied to the extent that life will become unbearable.

It should be a reminder to man in which the status he has fallen from, and who his Creator is. Man was created to have dominion over this planet, yet the planet has had dominion over man for these last 6,000 years. Man can see the dreadful power in a hurricane and in deadly disease such as the Bubonic plague.

It should be a wake-up call for those who do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, to make that decision now before they have to face these coming days of judgment.